I'll Pay
by tannhausersnow
Summary: Barry finds Caitlin in the rain. They talk, go to her apartment, and talk some more. Mentions of Iris. Minor mentions of Wally, Joe, Cisco, Jay, Julian, H.R., Oliver, Felicity, and Thea. - A Snowbarry fanfiction.


"Ugh!" Caitlin whined, whispering profanities. The rain droplets rapidly fell from the sky, smacking the pavement with such force it splashed everywhere. It was quite unfortunate for her, seeing as how her white blouse was now see-through and boasting her nude bra. The fabric of her clothes stuck to her body, showing off all the curves Caitlin had hidden from the outside world. I don't _hide_ them, she thought as she took a few more steps toward the corner of the street.

She was five blocks away from her apartment. It was 6:26 in the afternoon and an hour ago, she had decided to walk to a cafe that she's been wanting to visit for weeks. It was nice, but she preferred the coffee at Jitters. Caitlin now had no idea why she would choose to walk in four-inch heels to a wannabe-Starbucks on a then-sunny day instead of curling up on the couch and reading a book. What had prompted her to do that? Oh, wait. Iris, Wally, and even H.R. had been swapping stories with Cisco earlier about recent events and Caitlin began to overthink. Did Cisco really have a bigger life than her?

Caitlin had told herself it wasn't her fault. She was terrified of what she was becoming. Something could go wrong if she went out and had fun. She could kill everyone. She could hurt the people she cared about. The necklace wasn't as annoying as the handcuffs, but she hated it. It reminded her of her Earth-2 counterpart. It reminded her of Killer Frost.

"Caitlin?" asked a voice, sounding genuinely shocked. The voice belonged to Barry, who stood in front of her. He had an umbrella. If she hadn't been so embarrassed, she would have taken a picture of his priceless face.

"H-Hey, Barry!" Caitlin smiled, folding her arms in an attempt to cover her chest.

"You should curse more often," Barry teased, offering her a dashing smile. Caitlin's face went red, her blush visible for everyone to see. He cleared his throat suddenly and was quick to take off his oddly-comfortable jacket and hand it to Caitlin. "To cover your, uh," he mumbled, waving his hand and gesturing at her breasts.

"Oh!" Caitlin squeaked. She internally slapped herself. This is not how she is supposed to act. She never squeaks or blushes or curses. She certainly never embarrasses herself. "Thanks," she said firmly, approaching Barry while slipping on the large coat. Her arms barely reached the sleeves, but she felt warm and protected nonetheless. He gently caressed the small of her back when he put the umbrella over both of them.

"So… uh… what are you doing here?" he inquired, his breath touching Caitlin's pale cheek ever-so-slightly. She looked up at him and stared into his green eyes. They looked very dark, almost black, under the umbrella but Caitlin could see the compassion in it―the love. Caitlin was too busy trying to keep the conversation normal and civilized to tell what kind of love. She didn't think much of it.

"I checked out the coffee place I told you about," replied the brown-haired beauty. She gave him a small grin, the crinkles by her eyes making its usual appearance.

Barry nodded. "I can take you home, if you'd like," he offered.

Caitlin's lips twitched as she smiled. "No, I can walk. It's fine."

"Cait."

"Go home to Iris."

"Cait."

"Aren't you guys taking it slow?"

Barry sighed heavily. He had been avoiding discussing about his relationship with Iris. Nobody had been questioning it anyways. He assumed they didn't want to stick their nose in his business. "No, we agreed to be friends, Caitlin. To how it was before."

"Before?" Caitlin frowned. _Before_. He was in love with Iris when Barry awoke from his coma. He had always been.

Barry's hand trailed up and down Caitlin's spine under the jacket she had put on. The other hand was holding the umbrella. He turned to face her more directly. "Those feelings I had for her… It was an illusion. Caitlin, it's been months. Iris and I are getting out of that awkward phase and gradually becoming best friends again. I hope, anyways…"

Caitlin placed her pale hands on Barry's chest. "Well, that's good, right? You're both moving on?"

Barry smiled again and took a hold of her hand. He suddenly took several steps forward, pulling Caitlin along with him. She was too surprised to worry about the rain. When the pair reached a small alleyway, Barry looked around. Then, in a flash, he set the umbrella down and wrapped his arms around Caitlin, swiftly picking her up. Before she could protest, however, Caitlin found herself at home.

"Barry!" she huffed once she escaped from his grip on her and sat on her couch. She took off her heels and let her feet breathe a little. "You forgot your umbrella," she pointed out.

"It's Oliver's actually," he chuckled, somewhat proud of himself. "Or Felicity's. Or Thea's. I'm not entirely sure."

Caitlin couldn't help but laugh at his childishness. Barry sat next to her and his leg collided with hers. Caitlin felt flustered at the warmth. She had felt only cold ever since Killer Frost's powers awakened.

"You don't have to be afraid, you know," Barry said, breaking the silence that had filled the room.

"I could hurt you, Barry. And I really don't want to do that."

"You won't, Cait. I promise."

"You can't promise that."

"I can show you."

And with that, Barry leaned in. Caitlin let out a muffled noise but the shock quickly disappeared and was replaced with a new feeling. A different feeling. Her lips passionately collided with his again after he pulled away for a breath.

"Agh," she whispered when her wet back came into contact with the soft material of the couch. Barry was on top of her, his hands at her sides. Caitlin felt brand new. Jay hadn't made her feel this way. Nothing ever happened with Julian. But it all ended soon.

Barry pulled away first. He sat back up on the couch and sighed. Caitlin reacted quickly and joined him. She nervously ran her fingers through her hair, damaged from the rain.

"Caitlin… _Cait_ ," he spoke, enunciating her name so delicately she thought he was crying. "This isn't… Our first time shouldn't be like this."

Caitlin stared at him. " _Our_... _first_ … _time_..?"

"No! No! Not... I mean… I should at least take you out on a date or something," he answered, shyly smiling a little.

Caitlin grinned at him and tried to make the conversation more light-hearted for once. She was always so depressing compared to Barry. "Then why don't you?"

Barry chuckled. "You should, uh, get changed. Take a shower. Or something. You could get sick."

Caitlin didn't know how he could be so caring. The world was so cruel to him. "Yeah," she said, "Why don't you order some Big Belly Burger? Pick out a movie? I have a twenty."

"Sounds like a deal… but I'll pay."

"No, I'll pay. You got me home safely."

"You make sure I'm always healthy."

"You've saved my life plenty of times."

"And vice versa."

"Barry! Just let me pay!"

"No, Cait, I have to be the gentleman!"

"Why does the man always pay?"

"It's common courtesy!"

"It's inequality," Caitlin reasoned. "So I'll pay."

Barry grumbled. "You can pay for half."

"Okay."

"Okay."


End file.
